Machine for the production of artificial flowers



Aug. 25, 1931.

MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ARTIFICIAL FLOWERS G. BONTEMPI l,820, 524

5 Sheets-Sheet 1 G. BONTEMPI Aug. 25 1931.

MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTIONOF ARTIFICIAL FLOWERS Filed Sept. 12, 1928 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 .Aug. 25, 1931. I v G. BO|\|TEMP| 1,820,524

MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ARTIFICIALFLOWERS Filed Sept. 12, 1928 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 I [HI] HHHII' awuemto'c Aug. 25, 1931. 1,820,524

MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ARTIFICIAL FLOWERS G BONTEM Pl Filed Sept. 12, 1928 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Aug. 25,1931.

1 G. BONTEMPI 1,820,524

MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF ARTIFICIAL FLOWERS Filed Sept. 12, 1928 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 IIIHH IIHHIHHHI gum/" 6oz v 6009211! Janina 41' 611cm:

Fatented i5,

GIUSEPPE BONTEIJIPI, 01 NEW YORK, N. Y.

' MACHINE son Tnn PRQDUGTION' or 'An'rrrioml. rLownRs Application filed September. 12, 1928. Serial. No. 305,374.

This invention relates to the manufacture of artificial flowers andmore particularly refers to improvements in machines for the forming and slit ping of blanks such '5 as are generally used in producing petals of v flowers having a. structure composed of radially directed elements, such as chrysanthemums, asters, etc.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a machine for the, curling and forming of artificial flower "blanks com posed of a plurality of radially extending elements, Whereby an entire blank can be formed at one stroke of the machine under conditions closely duplicating the opera tions which are now performed by hand.

Another object of the invention is to provide a machine of the character specified, in

which means; are provided for adjusting the pressure exerted by the tools against the blank according to the nature of the flower to be produced and according to the number of tools actuated at the same time.

A further object is to provide a machine for the curling and forming of artificial flower blanks, permitting ofproducing all the necessary movements, including the heating of-t'he tools required by a single stroke of an operating lever requiring no special skill or experience onthe part of the operator.

Other ob ects and advantages of. present invention will more fully appear as thel description proceeds and will be set forth and claimed in the appended claims;

The blanksgenerally employed for the manufacture of artificial flowers of the character specified are generally in the form of segmental pieces of fabric cut to produce a number of elongated radially arranged pointed petals. These blanks are made ready for assembling to make a complete flower bypressing and -moving a heated edged tool along the center line of each I petal; the blank being previously placed up'on a platen of a yielding or resilient character.

The combined heat andipressure cause a curling up of each petal 'vvhich more or less produces the desired-effect according astill different form; V s F 1g. 10 is an enlargedplan sectional view to the skill' and; experience; of the oper ator. a V Although. the'results thus obtained are fairly-satisfactory, the operation consumes a great deal of timeand therefore the fin-' 'ishedproduct entails a rather high cost of production. It is obvious that this cost would be considerably reduced if a number of petals could be curled" and formed at v the same time. The machine to which this.

invention refers has been particularly designed with this object in view and theree fore" the reduction of cost of production illustr ted in the accomp i ngs. in which: r r

Fig. v1 is aside viewtin elevationo f a i machine adapted to segmental in shape;

Fig. 21s a plan viewjthereof;

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional elevationof the handle flower. blanks Fig. 4 1s a deta1l slde. VJBVV; in elevatlon of the tool releasing mechanism;

Fig. 51s a detail side sect1onal elevation illustrating the tool carrying arms at an intermediate position of their radial movement; r 1 I p p v Fig. 6' isa plan view of a segmental blank adaptedto' be finishedbymeans of the machine illustrated in Figs. l-to 5;

is one of the main. advantages afforded therer ar ous embodiments of myinvention are 1 "Fig. 7 is a side-view in elevation of a bodying my invention; I I I Fig. 8 a sectional plan olf' the same through line 88 of Fig; 7;.

other machine embodying my invention in of the same through line, 10.10 of Fig. '9; and r Fig. 11 is a side View in elevationof ,a

sli 'htly modified type '7 of: machine also sin- 1 Fig. 9is'a sideyv1ew. 1nelevationof ans still different type of machine also embody.

in g my invention.

An embodimenti of my invention "is illus I trated in Figs. 1 tobI In the simple form illustrated in sald figures. the device essentially comprises means for producing inward radial movement under pressure of a segmental series of heated tools preferably of the rolling type; said tools being capable of curling or forming the radially disposed leaves or petals of an artificial flower blank such as illustrated in Fig. 6.

The device also comprises means for retaining the curling tools in their contracted position at the end of their stroke permitting the withdrawal of said tools from the curled blank, and means for once more forcing said tools to their extended position after they have been moved a suflicient distance from the bed of the device.

The operating mechanism is preferably so designed that the tools and the frame carrying the same when in their inoperative position are arranged. with. the tools proper exposed to the action of a source of heat, leaving however, a clearance between id tools and frame and the bed of the machine sufficient to permit free removal of the formed blank and replacement of a new blank.

Referring to said figures, the machine comprises a base or bed plate 20 on which is mounted an upright frame 21, terminat ing at the upper end with two spaced arms 22, 23. At the base of said arms is mounted a horizontal pivotal shaft 24 and at the end of said arms is mounted another horizontal pivotal shaft 25. The machine is operated by means of a lever 26 pivotally mounted on shaft 24, made integral with a geared seg ment 27. Said segment is in mesh with a idle pinion 28 mounted on shaft 25 and said pinion in its turn intermeshes with rack 29 which forms part of a carriage 30 mounted for longitudinal travel in relation to a frame 31 within which said carriage is slidably mounted.

Frame 31 is in its turn provided with two cars or lugs 32, 33 (see Fig. 2) loosely mounted on shaft 25 permitting tilting movement of said frame about said shaft. Within frame 31 is also slidably mounted a plunger 34 which is longitudinally movable both in relation to said frame and in relation to carriage 30. At the lower end, said plunger is bent inwardly to form an extension 35 having an opening the rear end of which when the device is in its working position shown in Fig. 3, interlocks with a lug 36 carried by frame 21 and acts as a lock, retaining frame 31 in its vertical posi tion shown, and preventing tilting movement thereon about its pivotal support 25.

A segmental plate 37, preferably provided with a segmental rim 38, extends from carriage 30 to which it is attached, to the front thereof. In the machine illustrated, the rim 38 extends about on either side of the central line of the machine and forms a sup port for a plurality of brackets 39 each one of which is formed with a downwardly and outwardly directed arm 40 providing a pivotal point of attachment 41, for the radially movable tool holders 42.

The position of brackets 39 can be adjusted along rim 38 according to the angular position of the leaves or petals of the blank to be operated upon as will be explained. later.

At the front end of carriage 30 is mounted a longitudinally sliding plate 43, the lower end of which carries a pressure member 44 which is provided with two vertically spaced parallel segmental ribs 45, 46, forming a segmental groove 47 concentric to segmental rim 38. I

Said pressure member is mounted underneath plate 37 and is movable longitudinally of carriage 30 by virtue of the sliding rela tion of plate 43 to said carriage.

Member 44 is provided with a pin 47 upwardly projecting through a threaded sleeve 48 upwardly extending from plate 37 and a nut 49 provided with a hub 50 through which pin 47' may project, may be screwed more or loss over sleeve 48 so as to increase or decrease the tension of a pressure spring 51. interposed between the upper surface of member 44 and the inner surface of nut 49.

The action of said spring is to force memsaid stop abuts against the upper end of carriage 30.

When pressure member 44 is forced upwardly against the action of spring 51, its movement will be transmitted to plate 43 and plunger 54. The upward movement of plunger 53 is permitted by a cam surfaced dog 57 pivotally mounted onto the top of carriage 30 at 58; but when the movement of plunger 53 is terminated, the cam surface of dog 57 which is urged. to rotate in a counterlockwise direction with reference to Fig. 3 by a spring 59, bears against surface 60 of plunger 53 and tends to oppose its return movement.

By virtue of this arrangement when pressure membc 44 is forced upwardly, coinpressing spring 51, and then released, spring 51 may extend to a limited extent, but as soon as the braking action of cam dog 57 becomes effective, the return movement of pressure member 44 due to the expansion of spring 51 will be checked.

However, by depressing the outer end 61 of dog 57 its pressure against surface (30 will be released and spring 51 will once more Lassa be free to force'pressure member'sl to its I V p can'freely insert a hand over the bed plate of thej'machine inorder' to remove a finished extreme position away from plate 37'." The" tool holders tQ are-in the form of arms carryingat the outer end the tool proper62 having the form of a disk'with a fairly sharp edge, and'carryingat an inter HI'GClfiLtG POIHt, 'aroller 63Iwh1ch 1s lnserted :wlthmjgroove 47 on pressure member 4 4."

' The radius of grooved? is smaller than placed from-a lineconnecting the center of {pivot 41 with the center of shaft 64 of eir cular tool 62. r

raised position shownin'liig'l, groovef' l'i acts as a positioning means for rollers 63,

h v and arms 4-2 will be maintained at adefinite angle due to the definite relation existing and that of pivots 41. I

' As the drawings clearly show, levers 4L2 are thus inclined inwardly, so that the di -I tance between the center of. rollers 62 and the axis passlng through thecenter of segmental rim 38 isless than thedistance be tween said axis and thecenters of pivots 41.

Referring to Fig; 3 therefore, it is seen' that whcn tilting frame'31 is'in its vertical position any tendency, to lowerfcarriage 3O and parts 37; 39,. 40 [carried therebyfwill result in a tendency of arms 42to move in- I wardly about their pivots ll. I

roller 63 is somewhatcloser'td the axis of if As stated 'before, plunger 34c'1issli'dable within tilting frame 31 'b'otli'in relation to said frame and to carriage ;;a tension spr1ng65'atta ched to the upper end ofplunk geri34 and to frame3ltends at a-ll'timesito move plunger 34-- inwardly, but a stop (not shown) limits the inward-stroke of plunger 34 in relation tofra'me ,31 to an amount such as representedbytheclearance 66 separating extension from the lower endofframei 31- when said extension 35*interlockswith On the other hand, the; upper stroke "of plunger 34 is limited by said clearance which isjust sufiicient to permit extension; 35 to become disengagedfrom lug 36. If desired,

' lug, 36 as shown i'n Fig. 3.

spring can'be dispensed with because;

plunger 34 'may be forced to its locking positionby carriage30 at the beginning of thedownward stroke of said 'carriage'due to the frictional engagement existing therebetween.

VVhenthe device in its position ofrest shown in 1, the tools, 62 are ,raised'a A considerable distance fromthe bed 20 and tilting frame 31 occupies a rearwardly in;

the radial distance of pivots A1 "from the: center of segmental rim 38, andtherefore roller 63 of eaclr'arm"4l2 isinwairdlydisj I As a result,'when the" carriage is'in its between the position of pressure membe rf l i At the start of the movement, will be. seen that for each arm 1-4-2, theposition of clined position. At this stage operator blank and replace a new one, and tools 62" arefidirec'tly exposed to'the heat generated by some suitable means not shown; vVVhlle the'toolsarethus mad'eready for the next operation therefor, the operator removes the finishedwork and places a new blank in position, (as stated. In said -posi-. tion, ie'ver26 has been tilted to its extreme laterally,projecting from frame 31,;lock ingrboth lever 26 andframe3liin'position.;

"Lever 68 is retained in its'locking'posi} tion a leaf spring 71, but by depressing said "lever 68. its hook shaped portionj67 becomes disengagedfrompin 70 and on ac count 0f its weightthe entireframe.31 to- .getlier with' partscarried thereby tends to tilt"d'ownwardly in a counterclockwise direction about plvot 25.,

iowcver, if lever '26 is prevented from tilting downwardly aboutits pivot 22 in a clockwise direction, by exerting upon it a-force tending to rotate it in a counterclockwise direction, geared section 27; will prevent the rotation of"pinion 28 in a create a tendency said pinion rotate 1n aclockw1se' dlrectionretaining carriages 30 in its upward position' in relation'to 7 i frame'31. I a

l Vh'en saidflcarriage 301s in-itsupward position, the upper surface of rack2'9abuts against the lower end of an-adjustable screw '72, depending from the, upper. yokeportion i also 73 9fplunger-3lgrso that'plun'ger 34; IS'hGld HIltS extreme upward posgtio-nfwith' ts extension 35 abuttlngagainst the lower end of frame 31,]as shown in Fig.1;fthe

result is that frame 31 itself is prevented j from-tilting downwardly."about pivot 25! If, on the. other-hand, lever 26 isaliowed about pivot 25 due to the tilting movement of frame 31 about" said pivot in a'countei- Glockwi'se direction. I

' Saidlfr'ame' 31 will continue to said stopsbeing preferably of ashock ab sorbln'g nature; I I

, .At this point "a slight. either "a a s of lever 26. will cause, through segment}? war dly unt1l 1ts rear'surface 74 strikes stops 75' inwardly projecting from upright .21, 1

{is i Boy.

countcrclockwlse direction and W111 1n fact permit spring to force downwardly plunger 34, thus causing extension to engagolug 86, locking frame 31 in position. Continued downward motion of lever 26 will result in carriage 30 being moved further down until the lower edge of tool-s 62 strikes the upper face oi -a platen 7G.

The curling of petals Oil: artificial llower blanks is now generally performed by pressing a hot tool preferably of the rolling type against the middle line of each petal and running said tool along said middle line practically for the entire length thereof, said blank being placed upon a relatively soft surface such as that of rubber or felt, and the pressure to form the petal beingoxerted against said surface.

During the operation therefore, the tool forces the central line of the petal within the temporary depression formed through the yielding surface underneath due to the pressure exerted on the tools, and the fin ished petal comes out curled by the heat of the tool and with a longitudinal central depression rz-xpresenting the central rib of the petal.

My machine is designed to exactly reproduce these conditions, and therefore platen 76 is made of fairly thick felt or rubber, the blank which is segmental in shape being placed in the right position by forcin its dges against gu iding plates or gauges (7, (8, between which platen (6 is inserted.

After the lower edge oi? tools 62 has reached the upper surface of platen 76, continuation of the downward. movement of lever 26 will first cause a reaction of the surface of the platen against sa d tools 62, tending to tilt arms 42 upwardly; however, upward movement of said arms is revented by segmental rib 46 against which abut rollers (33, the upper movement of said rib being opposed byspring 51. The initial further depression of carriage 8d and parts 37, 39, 44 carried thereby will therefore result in tools 62 becoming embedded to a certain extent within the resilient material of which platen 7G is composed as shown in Fig. 3.

At a certain point however, the r istance oflcred by platen 76 will become greater than that oli ered by the depression of spring 51 and at this point, further downward motion of carriage 30 caused by further downward motion oi? lever 26 will result in an angular motion in a counterclockwise direction of arms 42 in relation to their pivots 4-1, and consequent translatory inward motion in radial direction of tools (32 along the middle line of the corresponding petal placed on platen 76, and movement of pressure member 44 towards member 87, against the action of spring 51.

As arms 42 are thus caused toniove inwardly until lever 26 reaches its extreme downwardposition, pressure member 44 is rearwardly roast;

forced towards plate 37 and through part 43 causes upward movement of plunger 53, moy ement of said plunger in this direction being unopposed as stated by cam acting dog 57.

\Vhen the downward stroke of lever 26 is completed, said lever moved in the opposite direction, causing rotation of segment 27 in a countercloolnvise direction and rotation of pinion 28 in a clockwise direction. This results in' carriage 30 being moved upwardly in relation to frame 31 while arms 42 remain in their contracted position, return movement of member 44 to its normal position due to the pressure of spring 5i being checked by dog 57 hearing against surface 60 of plunger 53.

This is a necessary feature because ii arms 42 were allowed to spring back they might get entangled in the curled petals and the work would be damaged.

When carriage 30 reaches the upper end of its stroke, the upper surface oft rack 29 will strike against the lower end oi screw 72 causing extension of the lower end of plunger 8% to become disengaged from lug 36. In order to make this possible, the rear part 61 of cam acting do 57 is provided with an opening 79 throu i. which screw 72 may project, as will be understood.

As the upper surface of extension 35 strikes the lower surface of frame 31, out-- wardsliding movement of carriage 30 in V relation to said frame 31 becomes checked, so that pinion 28 becomes looked against rotation in relation to rack 29; however, since upon continuation of the upward movement oi"- lever 26, pinion 28 is forced to lo tato in a clockwise direction, carriage 30 together withlparts carried thereby and to gether with holding frame 31 will rotate bodily about shailt 25 together with pinion 28; so that frame 31 will finally reach the inclined position shown in Fig. 1. 7

At this point, as explained, part 67 of lever 68 will engage pin 70 and frame 81 and lever 26 will become locked against movement away from each other. At the same time, a lug 80 carried by lever 28 strikes against the rear end. 61 oi dog 57, depressing it against the action of spring 59 and thus freeing plunger 53.

Spring 51 becomes thus tree to expand and will force pressure member 44 outward ly until stop 52 strikes the upper suriace of carriage 30, at the same time causing-arms 42 to spread to their normal positions and to remain directly exposed to the heat Q6111 erated by the heating means provided for this purpose.

The release of dog 57 and plunger is illu. rated in Fig. 4, where lug 80 shown stindng the rear end G1 of dog 57 t tin.-

end ofthe upward stroke of lever 26.

Due to the weight of frame and of thevarious parts carried thereby, the tendency of the same to tilt downwardly whenfreed I V tact between; the surface of cam aetingjdogi by lock 67 necessitates the application of considerable pressiu'efagainst lever 26 5- inorder to cause said movement totake place while 'zlunger 34 remains in its raised'jposi- H tion; therefore, I prefer tofprovide,said frame 31 with weight compensating means cooperating with the pressure exerted against handle 26 in. opposing to a certain extent the rapid descent offrame 31..

For instance, the weight compensating means may consist of a spring 81 abutting againstthe surface of a bushing 82, carried 7 by'upright 21, andagainst the head 83 of a plunger 84 pivotally attached atfthe upper endto the rear surface of frame iil as The stem portion of 1 said shown at .85. plunger 8-1 slides through bushing 82,- sotliat downward movement of frame 31 ,results in a gradual compression of spring 81. i

In order .to counterbalance the changes gradually taking place in the direction of plunger 8 due to the displacement' oiifit's point of attachment 85 however, bushing 82 is mounted on a horizontal understood. 1

The tension pivot as will be of spring. 51 is adjusted'ac- Mcordingjto'the pressure to be exerted by" tool 62 against the surface of they platen and according to the number of arms The machine can be usedw1th ,sege

used. mental blanks hav1ng d fferent. angular an 1 widths'and difierent, numbers of radially extending petals: Insofar as" the petals are concerned the position of arms 42" can-be adjusted accordingly, by. adjusting the po sition of brackets 39 along rim 38; and as" to the angular extension ofthe blank'to be acted upon, gauges T7, 7 8 are arranged for lateraland angular adjustment by means of'lin'ks 86, 87, 86, 87, pivotally connected. to said gauge members and adjustable" to or from the central line of the machineby means of screws such as 88inserted through slots 89.

A typical segmental blank 90 formed with a number of radial petals 91is-illustrated f in Fig. 6. I Asstated duringflthe course of the description before'tools 62 initiate their inward radial travel, rollersf63 which; act as rests therefor are closer to the axis of rim 38 than .said tools 62.. J On the 'other "hand, as tools (32 move inwardly,.they reach a position which is closer to said axis than that of rollers 6.3, an intermediate position of tools 62, for instance, being illustrated to the axis of rinr38 isas close, as possible to the intermediate vertical position of tools Therefore. will be apparent thattho-position of rollers 63 in relation spring; 5 1'fthrough'out the. inward travel gof tOOlS i It will be observed that the frictionalcom- 57 andfsurface 60 of plunger 5 3;pe11nit'sa; certain amount of expansion of spring -15; before the plunger is actually locked'in rpo-e sition by the lcam acting dog; .therefore the contacting surfaces'may be'subjeet to :wear i 75 a softer metal than that of;camj-act1ngi610%., e 57 and interchangeable byprovi-dlng aI-l'B-w v and therefore I prefer to make surface, 60 of.

movable lining 92* for the inner surfaceof plunger 53. H a It is obvlous, of course, that an absolute instead if preferred. The machine can also be; made to operate on blanks extending aroundan entire c rcumference by pIOV1d Such a modification isillustrated 'in*Figs;

neck type having anfinwa-rd horizontal eX operating mechanism, and96 designates a and supporting a yielding platen 98.

By-referringto Fig.8 it is seen'that a,

"ingfla rotatable'table as asupportior a' cir I .cula'ryielding or deformable. platen.

table rotatable about a. pivot 97 on base 93."

96 blank 99 extending 'for the entire eircumference and provided with a number of radial petals 100 can be placed :on the platen,v said 5 blank being provided with a central opening 101 cooperating with (pin 97 in positiom; ing the blank. 2 v

' The axis ofpin 97 coincides withthe of the-circumference around which the tools i suitable angular displacement of theplaten each time the machine ;is operated, a 11ew set of petals may be brought to the operative;

102 are arrange'dfand :by providing for a I i position. For nstance, lfllllGjtOOlS 105 extendgfor a90 are, the platenwill have. to I be angularly;,displaced. 90" eachtime the machine'is operated, and afterfour .opera- 1 tions the finished blank; may be remov d-a d a new blank inserted V p InFig. 7, Iillustrate the-manner. in which 7 the heating of thetools may take placewhen i. the tilting frameg103 is in its inclined posi-..

tion,i 104, designatingv vfburners directing flames105 against the tools in said position.

' Inorder to provide for theheating of thetools, at a position,notinterferingmwith,

the handling of the :blanks; being placed on the platen .or removed therefrom, it is-not absolutely necessary that an inelinable frame such as 31 berprovided. For. instance; in Figs. 9 and 10, I illustrate a device where H 5 H the frame 106 is "not tiltable but remains.

permanently set in:a vertical position, being i mounted on a stem 107 which; is-rotatable between two extreme angular positions ,ona'vertical pivot -108.; ii I 1 so ly'positive 'locking arrangement maybeused I As represented, the device may be locked in its working position by causing extension 109 of plunger 110 to interlock, with a lug 111 which is fixed on the base 112'. The operation of the actuating lever 113 will cause vertical displacement of the carriage 114 in relation to frame 106 as will be understood from the description of Figs. 1 to 5; but when carriage 114 has reached its extreme upward position, it will cause extension 109 115', releasing the pressure member 116 and permitting spring 117 to cause the outward spreading of two carrying arms 118.

The two angular ositions of stem 107 may be determined y a spring pin such as 119 cooperating with two angularly space depressions 120 provided in the stem of pivot 108 clearly illustrated in Fig. 10.

Other arrangements embodying my invention may be devised in various forms.

For instance, in Fig. 11 I illustrate a treadle operated machine where a series of segmental blanks may be placed on a platen 121 to be acted upon simultaneously by a circumferential series of tools 122 carried so by arms 123 mounted all around a circular plunger frame 124 in conjunction with a pressure member 125, said plunger frame 124 being connected to a treadle 120 by a connection 127 in a manner such as ordinarily employed in foot presses and like treadle operated machines.

From the foregoing description, it is apparent that the details of construction of my machme may vary from those shown without departing from the inventive idea;

the drawings are therefore understood as being intended for illustrative purposes only and not in a limiting sense. Accordingly, I reserve myself the right to carry my invention into practice in all those ways and manners which may enter, fairly, into the scope of the appended claims. v

I claim: 1. In a device of the character described,

the combination with a platen, of a pivotally mounted tool arm movable to and from the surface of said platen in a plane at right angle thereto, means for forcing said tool arm against said platen, causing translatory 5;; "movement of the end thereof bearing against said surface, along said surface, 111 the dlI'GC- tion of said plane, means for simultaneously exerting pressure against said arm, opposing its plvotal and translatory movement,

w and means automatically locking said arm against return movement to its normal position at the ends of its working stroke.

2. In a device of the character described,

the combination with a platen, of a pivot- (ii ally mounted tool arm movable in a plane the end of its working stroke, and means for releasing said locking means.

3. In a device of the class described, the combination with a platen, of a plurality of tool arms arrangedalong curve, said arms being pivotally mounted and movable on converging planes at right angles. to curve and platen, means for forcing tool arms against said platen, causing inward translatory movement of the end thereof bearing against the surface of said platen, along said surface, in the directions of said planes, means automatically locking said arms in their contracted position, and means for moving said arms away from said platen while in said contracted position.

4. In a device of the class described, the combination with a platen, of a plunlity of tool arms arranged along a curve, said arms being pivotally mounted and movable on. converging planes at right angles to said curve and platen, means for forcing said tool arms against said platen, causing inward translatory movement of the ends thereof bearing against the surface of said platen. along said surface, in the directions of said planes, means for simultaneously exerting pressure against said arms, opposin thenpivotal and translator-v movement, i'ncans automatically lockinsgsaid arms in their contracted position, and means for moving said arms away from said platen While in said contracted position.

5. In a device of the class descriltied, the combination with a platen, of a plurality of tool arms adiustably arranged along a curve,

' said arms being pivotally mounted and movable on converging planes at right angles to said curve and platen, means for forcing said tool arms against said platen, ClllSlllQj inward translator-y movement of the ends thereof bearing against the surface of said platen, along said surface, in the directions of said planes, means for simultaneously exert pressure ma. arms, oppos n their pivotal and translatory moven I means for regulating said pre: ure, means automatically locking said arms in their contracted position, and means for moving said arms away from said platen while in said contracted position.

6. In a device of the class described, the combination with a platen, of a frame, a carrier movable towards and away from said platemmounted on said frame, a: plu rality of tool arms adJustably arranged along a curve, pivotallyi,mounted on said carrier, said arms being D'lOVELblQ OIl cons ivergingplanes at right angles to said curve 1 and platen, means for moving said carrier towards said platen, causing nward trans-s latory movement'of the endsfof said arms bearing against the surface thereof, alongaid surface, in the directions of said planes, means independent of sa'id carrier moving means. for retaining said arms intheiraeon- 5 7. In a device'of theelass described, the

combination with a pl aten, of" a frame-, a

carrier movable towards. and away from said platen mounted on said frame, (i plurality of tool arms ad ustably. arranged along. a, curve,

. pivotally mounted on said icarriensaid arms being movable on converging planes at right angles to said curve and platen, means for -n1oving said carrier towards said. platen,

causing inward translatory movement of the ends of said arms bearing against the surface thereof, along said surface, 1n the difreetions of said planes,"means for regulating said pressure, means'for automatically lock- ;mg said arms in their contracted position said means retaining said arms in said position, while said carrier is moved in the opposite direction, and means for, releasingsaid -armswhen said carrier reaches a predetermined position.

8. In a device of the class described, the

combination with a platen, of a stand, a frame movably mounted on said stand,

position, a carrier movable towards and away from said platen mounted on said frame, a plurality of tool arms'arranged along a curve, pivotally mounted 'onsaid carrier, said arms being movable on con-i verging planes at right angles to'said' curve and platen,means for moving said carrier towards said platen, causing inwardtranslatory movement of the endoffsaidarms 51 bcarin'g against the surfacethereof, along said surface, in the directions of said planes, means for locking said arms 1n their 0011? tracted position saidmeans retaining said arms in sald position, while said earner 1s is moved in the opposite dlrectlon, vmeans for 1 releasing said frame, means for moving said frame to its normal posltion 1n relatlon to said stand and means for releasing said arms when said frame reaches a predeter enmed position. I I 9. In a device of the class described, the

combination with a platen, of a stand, a frame, a carrier movable towards and away from said platenmounted on said frame, 65 a plurality oftool arms arranged alonga pivotallymountedaon said carrier, said arms being movable on converging planes at right causing inward'translatory movement of the a curve, pivotallyl mounted on said carrier,

said arms being movable on converging 1 means for simultaneously exerting pressure; against said arms,'opposing their pivotal anfdtranslatory movement, means for locln ingfsai'd ,arms in their Contracted position saidmeans retaining said arms in said posi-Q tlon, while said carrier lsmoved mthe op-;

posite direction, means for releasing said frame, means for moving saidframe to itsnormalfposition in relation to said stand,

and means for releasing said arms when said-frame reaches a predetermined positlon,

l0. Ina. device of the class described, the,

combination,:With a platen, ofa fr'ame, a

carrier movable towardsi and away from sa d platen mounted on said frame, a plu ral ty of tool arms arranged along a curve,"

angles 'to'said curve and p1aten,--meansfor; moving sa d carrier towards, said .platen,-,

ends ofsaid arms bearing against-[the sur-' face thereof, along said surfacepin the" di rections of said planes, means for .regulat inlg said pressure, "means automatically looking said arms in their contracted position said means retaining said'arms in said position, while saidcarrier is moved in the opposit'e direction, means for releasing said arms -when said-carrier reaches a. predetermined positlon, and a slngle' roperatmg -means for locking said frame inoperative imember causing the operation of said ele ments in the propersequence.

11 Ina-device of the class described thei combination with a, platen, sofa. stand, a

frame movably mounted on said stand,- means forlo'cking sald frame in "operative pos1t1on,a carr er H1OV21bl6-t0W3IdSg-ZLI1d awayfrom said platen mountedon said" frame, a'fplurality of tool-arms arranged along a1 curve, pivotally mounted on said carrier, said arms being movable on iconverging. planes at right angles to said curve andyplaten, means for moving said carrier 7 towards said platen, causing inwardtrans latory movement-of the ends of said arms bearing'against thesurface thereof, along saidsurface, in thedirections of said planes, means automatically locking said arms in their contracted position said means retaining said arms in saidposition, while said carrier is moved in the opposite;direction,' means for releasing said frame, means for in relation to said 1 stand, means i for. releas- I mg said arms when said frame rea'ches a predetermined pos tlon, and a slngleoperatmoving said frame to its normal position ing member causing the operation of said elements in the proper sequence. 12, In a device of the class described, 'th combination with a platen, a stand, a frame {pivotally mounted on said stand, and a tool carrier comprising a rack slidably mounted on said frame, of a pinion in mesh with said rack, copivotal with said frame, means for locking said frame in its operative position, mmeans for releasing said frame when said carrier has reached a predetermined posi tion in relation thereto, and means for rotating said pinion, causing sliding movement of said carrier when said frame is in its locked position, and tilting movement of said frame when in its unlocked position.

13. In a device of the class described, the

combination with a platen, of a stand, a H frame pivotally mounted on said stand, ZJmovable from an operative position at right angles to said platen to an inclined position in relation thereto, a tool carrier comprising" a rack slidably mounted on said frame, a plurality of tool arms arranged along a curve, pivotally mounted on said carrier, said arms being movable on converging planes at right angles to said curve, a pinion in mesh with said raclr, copivotal with said frame, means for locking said frame in its opera- "'tive position, means for rotating said pinion causing sliding movement of said carrier when said frame is in its locked position, and causing, inward translatory movement of the ends of said arms hearing against 'the surface of said platen, along said surface in the directions of said planes, when said carrier .LS moved towards said platen, means associated with said carrier for simultaneonsly exerting; pressure against said ltmrms, opposing their pivotal and translatory movement, means for retaining said pressure exerting means and tool arms in their contracted position, means for releasing said frame when sai d carrier 11 reached a premdetermined position in its travel away from said platen, permitting tilting nnweinent thereof, means for operating said pinion, and means for releasing said pressure exerting means and arms when said frame reaches Lina predetermined position.

l l. In a device of the class described, the combination with a platen, of a stand, a frame pivot-ally mounted on said stand, movable from an operative p sition at right angles to said platen to an inclined position in relation thereto, a tool carrier comprising a 'ack slidahly mounted on said frame, a plurality of tool arms arranged along an arc, pivotally mounted on said carrier, said 33 arms being movable on converging planes at right angles to said are, means for adj sting the relative position'of said'arms along said are, a pinion in mesh with said rack, copivotal with said frame, means for lock ing said frame in its operative position,

means for rotating said pinion causing sliding movement of said carrier when said frame is in its locked position, and causing inward translatory movement of the ends of said arms bearing against the surface of said platen, along said surface in the directions of said planes, when said carrier is moved towards said platen, spring means associated with said carrier for simultaneously exerting pressure against said arms, opposing their pivotal and tran'slatory movement, means for adjusting the pressure exerted thereby, means for retaining said pressure exerting means and tool arms in their contracted position, means for releasin said frame when said carrier has reached a predetermined position in its travel away from said platen, permitting tilting move ment thereof, means for operating rid pinion, means for releasing said pressure exerting means and arms when said frame reaches a predetermined position, and means for retaining said frame in said position.

GIUSEPPE BONTEMPI. 

